The White Cloaks
by willy.hizzy
Summary: Happens forty-one years before episode/chapter 1. After completing his Bankai training Lt. Kuchiki thinks his life will be easier. How very wrong he is. Disclaimer: Unfortunately I do not own bleach
1. Chapter 1: Cherry Blossoms

**AN: This is my first fan fiction. Be nice and review please.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own bleach. Kubo alone reserves that right alone.**

**Chapter 1: Cherry Blossoms**

* * *

Sereitei: Squad 8 Barracks

On the roof of the squad eight barracks a middle aged man sat surrounded by a dozen bowls of sake, half of which were empty. Before he lifted the seventh bowl to his lips he closed his eyes and inhaled the sweet spring air. Then he opened them and observed the pink sakura petals as the wind blew them past him. Of all the flowers in the Sereitei the sakura flowers were his favourites. Not only did they smell great but their colour matched his haori.

"Captain!" called a young female voice from the ground.

The captain groaned and set the seventh bowl down. Why now? Why didn't she wait until he finished his sake?

He stood up and walked to the edge of the roof. A young woman who appeared to be in her late teens stood at the base of the barracks. She adjusted her spectacles to get a clearer look at him. When she noticed his pink cheeks, a clear indication that he had been that he had been drinking(AGAIN!) she frowned. In the blink of an eye she vanished from her spot.

To the normal soul it would seem like she had disappeared into thin air, but this man was nothing if not extraordinary. He saw her movements as clearly as you would see a man running. She jumped on the roof and moved past him. Before he realised what was happening she kicked the bowls that still contained sake. The half a dozen bowls skidded across the roof's surface before they fell off the edge.

"Nanao! No!" was all he could say.

This time it was he who vanished from sight. He appeared at the base of the building and tried to save his precious alcohol, at least one bowl of it. He was too late for that however.

"Noooo!"

It took him only half a second to get back on the roof and face his lieutenant.

"Do you have any idea what you've just done?" he asked in an over reactive tone.

Nanao adjusted her glasses again and gave him one of her trademark frowns.

"As a matter of fact I am clearly aware of consequences of my actions. I just saved you from embarrassing yourself at the captain's meeting."

His silly expression morphed instantly into a calm one.

"I see, so the old man has something to discuss. It must be important if he's called it this early I the morning."

Suddenly a massive wave of spiritual pressure hit them. Both captain and lieutenant were shocked by its strength. The fact that it belonged not to a captain but a lieutenant amazed the pink cloaked captain. After the spiritual pressure subsided he turned from Nanao and put on his trademark straw hat. His attention was now on the distant sounds of sword clash coming from the squad three barracks.

"I can't believe they're still going at it," came a voice from behind him. It did not belong to his lieutenant. "For the past ten years they've done nothing but train. I wonder if he's going to join us at this meeting. He hasn't attended one in the last decade."

The straw hat captain turned to see his old friend Juushiro Ukitake, a captain with long white hair, standing next to Nonao.

"Do you think he's going to attend this meeting Shunsui?" Ukitake asked.

Shunsui Kyoraku smiled and tipped his hat.

"With Kei you never know what to expect."

* * *

Sereitei: Squad 3 Barracks

"You'll have to do better than that lieutenant," a dark skinned captain with long black hair yelled as he dodged yet another Kido spell.

His lieutenant growled and attacked with his sword. With every swing a huge mass of spiritual pressure was released into the atmosphere. The level of spirit energy released by the lieutenant was enough to literally blow away most soul reapers, however, against a captain of Kei Katsu's prowess it merely blew his hair backwards. The lieutenant flash stepped behind his captain, who had his eyes on the countless sakura petals in the air. He then swung his katana with all his strength, expecting the blade to make contact. However, all the sword cut was air. Before the lieutenant could grasp the situation he felt the force of a shoe in his back, sending him tumbling a few feet away.

Captain Katsu watched his lieutenant on the ground, struggling to get up. He had a lot of open wounds and he looked like he was on the verge of death.

"Come on lieutenant," Katsu tried to encourage. "Get up and attack one more time."

The lieutenant, though bruised and battered, got to his feet. His legs were wobbly and his arms were shaky, but his determination was strong. Katsu admired this trade of his. The lieutenant was strong. He was a master of the Kido and had captain level riatsu. In terms of skill he still had a lot to learn however. He hadn't put a scratch on his captain today when Katsu had decided not to hold back. He was not even using his Bankai.

The lieutenant gripped his sword with both hands and pointed it at Katsu. Then he muttered "one last time" and disappeared from Kei's view, or so he thought. Katsu blocked his sword just as it materialised from his right.

"Your flash step is slow and predictable lieu—"

But that was exactly what the lieutenant was hoping his captain would do. Out of the corner of his eye Katsu noticed a blur of pink rapidly approaching him. He didn't get time to react as masses of sakura petals reached his spot, causing a huge explosion that was felt over a long distance in the Sereitei, accompanied by the thick wave of riatsu.

The lieutenant smiled at his well thought out plan. As the dust began to clear he limped to the spot his captain had been, imagining him bruised and broken on the ground. What a sight it would be to behold.

His mirth turned to shock when he found Katsu was not there. That was when he felt a katana slide across his neck, not slitting his throat… yet.

The lieutenant looked to his left flank, where Captain Katsu stood with his sword still levelled at his throat. Apart from his clothes, which were ragged, he seemed to have sustained little or no injuries. He had blood tricking down his face and he was panting heavily.

After half a minute of silence and not movement he pulled back his sword and ended his Shikai before he sheathed it. Then he addressed the lieutenant.

"I cannot deny that you are strong, but you still have a long way to go before you are able to match a captain with every swing of your zanpakutou." After another moment of silence he gave his vice-captain a proud smile. "Ok, maybe not so long a way. Your Bankai training is complete."

The lieutenant wiped his long black hair out of his face, revealing a bloody smile. Then the near billion sakura blossoms in the air merged with his sword, ending his Bankai.

Kei Katsu turned his back on his lieutenant and observed his surroundings. The squad three barracks were ruined from all the spiritual energy released into the atmosphere. A couple more buildings that had nothing to do with squad were also destroyed. Luckily he had made sure every soul in the Sereitei kept a distance of at least a kilometre radius from the barracks. He gave a long sigh, thinking about the reaction of his squad members when they see this. They would not be enthusiastic about rebuilding the barracks from scratch.

He turned back to his second-in-command.

"It's been a while since you've seen your family. Go home to your wife, she awaits your return Byakuya"

**-END-**

**AN: how was that for starters? **


	2. Chapter 2: The Captains

**AN: if you read and reviewed chapter 1 thanks.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach, Kubo is the sole owner.**

**CHAPTER 2: The Captains**

* * *

Sereitei: Squad 1 Headquarters

"This meeting is probably one to discuss useless factors that are of no interest to me."

The statement came from a gigantic fat captain. Although most of the captains didn't want to be there, he was the only one who expressed it. A captain with short brown hair and horn-rimmed glasses smiled when he heard this. He turned to his fellow captain, amusement clearly displayed in his eyes.

"Captain Kiganjo ," he began. "You ought to speak less and think more. If this meeting was not important do you think it would have been an emergency meeting?"

"Speak for yourself Aizen," Kiganjo remarked. "The last couple of emergency meetings were not worthy of a lieutenant's attention."

Juushiro Ukitake, fearing that the debate between the two captains will probably result in Kenpachi Kiganjo drawing his zanpakutou against Sosuke Aizen, decided to end it.

"Captain Kiganjo I have to side with Captain Aizen in this argument," he said. "Yamamoto-sensei would never call this meeting if he had trivial matters to discuss. If you believe this is not worth your time then I suggest you head for the door immediately."

The ten captains there, Ukitake included, closely observed their eleventh counterpart, interested in his reaction to what the white haired captain had just said. None of them were surprised when his sword hand gripped the handle of his zanpakutou.

"Unsheathing a zanpakutou in the Sereitei is a capital offense Kiganjo, though I doubt your pea-sized barbaric brain remembers that."

All eyes in the room turned to the door as Kei Katsu made his entrance.

After training with Byakuya he was planning on taking a long nap, but upon hearing about an emergency captains' meeting he changed his mind. He missed the meetings and it was not because of the discussions they held. He simply missed the drama. As cooperative as the captains appeared to the outside world, they really couldn't stand each other's guts. There were very good reasons for this. Kiganjo always made threats, Shunsui never took the meetings seriously, Juushiro and Komomura were too defensive of Yamamoto, Genrei Kuchiki and Kaname Tousen were too serious, Kuroutsuchi was too unpredictable, Unohana was too nice and Soifon was annoyed by all of them too easily. While changing into another pair of shihaksho and haori he had chuckled about this. The Captains' Council consisted of the most interesting people in the Soul Society.

"Look who was able to make it," Shunsui remarked. "Your presense has been missed by a lot of us, isn't that true guys?"

Kei smiled at the easy going captain. Though Kyoraku was more interested in chasing after the female soul reapers than doing his captain duties Katsu respected him more than the other captains. Though he didn't look it, the captain was a fountain of knowledge and wisdom, something that came with over a thousand years of experience.

"Katsu," Kiganjo interrupted Kei's chain of thoughts. "It has been a decade since you attended a meeting. It appears as though you have grown balls in that decade." The eleventh captain drew his sword.

Katsu took a step back, the squad eleven captain's solution for every problem never ceased to amuse him.

"There's no need for that now Kiganjo," Shunsui decided to interrupt. "If you continue with that reckless behaviour Old Man Yama will not take it kindly, especially in his quarters."

After a moment of thinking about what Shunsui had just said the captain of the fighting squad captain sheathed his zanpakutou. As dim witted as he was even he knew that the head captain was not someone to cross.

Genrei made his way to Kei and decided to initiate a conversation.

"How is Byakuya?" he asked.

Kei turned to the old man and gave him a reassuring smile. "Your grandson is fine, infact he's better than that. We just completed his Bankai training."

"I see."

That was all the Kuchiki clan head said before he returned to his place. Kei gave himself a little smile. That was probably Genrei's way of saying "thank you". He was just like most nobles, too proud to say it to those who came from Rukon.

Out of nowhere a deep rusty voice shouted, "SILENCE, THE MEETING IS ABOUT TO START."

All the captains turned to see a bald old man with a long white beard that was restrained by what appeared to be a rope. He had a scar shaped like an X on his head and accompanying him was a man with a curved moustache. The head captain Shigekune Genryusai Yamamoto and his lieutenant Chojiro Sasakibe had just entered the meeting room.

The other twelve captains immediately took up their arranged places in the meeting. The head captain stood in front of his lieutenant, facing all the captains. On his left side were the captains of squads 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 and 12. On his right were those of squads 3, 5, 7, 9, 11 and 13. Seeing that all the captains were present Yamamoto slammed the tip of his cane on the floor to get his subordinates' attention.

"All captains are in attendance," Lieutenant Sasakibe announced. "The meeting shall now commence."

Yamamoto, whose eyes were usually closed, opened them to show how serious he was about the meeting.

"It has come to my attention that hollow attacks on the Rukon District have been more frequent in the last couple of weeks. I sent ten seated officers to deal with them three days ago, however I have not heard from them since."

Kei uttered a low whistle. He could already tell where this meeting was headed to and he already knew which captain would volunteer to go and investigate the disappearance of the ten seated officers. Oh well, looks like this meeting was a waste of time after all. He sighed and looked at the other captains, who he realised had their attention on him.

"What?"

No one responded. They each turned their attention back on Yamamoto.

"With the disappearance of the seated officers, all who were ranged from tenth seat to third seat, I have no choice but to request that one of you investigates this mystery."

"Where in Rukon did you send them to?" Captain Shiba asked.

"District 80," the head captain replied.

Most of the captains, with the exception of Shunsui, Juushiro, Unohana and Genrei's jaws dropped. District 80? There was a possibility that hollows weren't responsible for the seated officers' disappearance. District 80, a place known as Zaraki, was the most dangerous settlement in the entire Soul Society. Rumour had it that most of the inhabitants of that area were gifted with spiritual energy, some of them even having captain-level riatsu.

"Are you sure the hollows are responsible for their disappearance?" Mayuuri asked, the smile on his freakish face gave everyone a chill down their spines. "I can find out. As you all know, I have very persuasive methods of making people speak."

"I will do this," Kiganjo offered.

"No you won't you barbarian," Mayuuri retorted. "I opted for this first."

"Everyone knows that you're just looking for new test subjects," Kiganjo responded. "Someone like you wouldn't care much for the mission."

"The same goes for you Kenpachi," Mayuuri recoiled. "You are just interested in satisfying your blood lust."

Kiganjo wanted to say something but he was interrupted by the stamping of Yamamoto's cane. The old man released a fraction of his riatsu in the action, causing the room to fall back into silence.

"Captain Kiganjo is more familiar with these kinds of situations," Yamamoto said. A smirk appeared on the fighting captain's face as he realised what was coming next. "So I will have to let him investigate this."

Mayuuri tried to argue but a look from the old man made him stop. As mad as he was about what Yamamoto had decided it would be foolish to try and challenge the man about his decision.

"Is there anyone who has anything more to say?" Yamamoto asked. No one answered. "Okay, meeting adjourned."

The head captain turned his back on them and made his exit, his lieutenant closely at his heels. When both squad 1 leaders were gone Mayuuri turned to Kiganjo with a threatening glare.

"You haven't heard the last of this, Kenpachi Kiganjo" he said in a venomous way before he shunpoed away.

"It's great to know that not much has changed since I last attended one of these meetings," Katsu said as he headed for the door.

"The fact that Kiganjo is still a pain in the arse and Yama-jii only assigned him on the mission because he was going to go either way?" Shunsui asked.

"That and more,"Kei answered, he turned to Soifon as she exited the door. "Charlene, do you mind if I drop by your house later?"

The look she gave him carried a lot of killing intent. "Call me that one more time and I guarantee you won't live long enough to regret it."

"I guess that's a yes then," Kei responded casually, watching her flash step away.

"You're looking for trouble," Shunsui told him after all traces of her spirit energy were gone.

"Trouble's my middle name," Kei replied. "You of all people must have realised this."

"Since you've finished Byakuya's Bankai training why don't we go a get a drink," Shunsui suggested. "Then we can catch up on the events of the last decade."

"Nah," Katsu decided. "I'm going took take a well deserved nap." He winked at the straw hat captain. "Then I'm going to look for trouble."

**-END-**

**AN: thanks for reading. Please review this chapter. **


	3. Chapter 3: Catching Up on Lost Time

**AN: Thanks to all those who reviewed **

**CHAPTER 3: Catching Up on Lost Time**

* * *

Sereitei: Kuchiki Estate

As Byakuya neared his home he got nervous. It had been ten years since he met his wife, three years had passed since he gave her the needed attention. Now that his training was complete all he wanted to do was to give her all his attention, something which he knew was unrealistic. Captain Katsu and Lord Kuchiki would never allow him to neglect his duties.

He stood at the door of a medieval Japanese noble's house and knocked. He closed his eyes and waited one, two, three seconds before he heard a voice from the inside.

"Enter."

She didn't sound happy. Realising this made him even more nervous. She had no reason to be happy. Her husband had been ignoring her for the past five years. Though he didn't want it to happen he wouldn't blame her if she gave him the cold shoulder.

Taking a deep breath, he pushed the doors open and revealed a short young woman with black hair sweeping the floor. She turned around to see who had entered. There was a clear frown on her face, until she saw who it was. Her big round blue eyes glimmered as her frown morphed into a smile.

"Byakuya!" she exclaimed as she threw her arms around him. "You're back!"

Before he realised what was happening she started showering him with kisses. For the first few second he was shocked, but quickly got over it and responded by taking her in his arms and kissing her back. They remained in this position until they were both out of air. Then they pulled away from each other.

"Why are you so early?" she asked.

He was quiet for a second, savouring the moment. He made his expression indifferent to make his revelation dramatic…

"I'm done with training," he announced.

Hearing this, she lunged forward and wrapped her arms around him a second time.

"Oh I can't believe this!" she exclaimed. "I'm so happy for you. You've finally achieved your dream."

Byakuya smiled and took her petite form in his arms. "Do you realise what this means Hisana? I can devote all my time, all my attention to you. I can make up for all the years I have been ignoring you."

When Hisana's facial expression changed he realised that he had said something wrong.

"You damn well have to make up for that!" she exclaimed, punching him in the face.

There was a crashing noise made as the lieutenant fell into a table, smashing and destroying everything that was placed there.

For half a minute he lay there. He had one hand covering his nose, trying to stop a nosebleed. The last decade of training he had been so occupied he forgot about Hisana's violent nature. The punch in the face brought back all those memories. It freaking hurt like hell! Sometimes he wondered why he married.

"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT FOR?" He shouted, sitting up.

The left corner of Hisana's mouth twitched, a clear sign that more of what she just did to his face was to come. Though he was prepared for it this time it didn't lessen the pain of getting kicked in the face. In fact it seemed to worsen the pain.

"YOU KNOW DAMN WELL WHY I DID THAT!" she shouted back. "FIVE YEARS WE'VE BEEN MARRIED! FIVE YEARS! AND IN THOSE FIVE YEARS HOW MUCH ATTENTION DID YOU GIVE ME?"

He was dumbstruck. He had no answer for her. He had no excuse for ignoring her all that time. What excuse would be valid enough to justify hurting the person you love most in this world?

He turned away from her. The tearful look in her eyes was more menacing than a thousand scowls and punches in the face. The realisation of having hurt a loved one is worse than being hurt by that person.

"I'm sorry." He didn't think it was enough, but that was all he could say.

She went on her knees and crawled over to him. At first he thought she was going to punch him again but quickly realised that was not the case when she wrapped her arms around him and pulled him in for a tight hug.

"Don't do that to me again do you hear?" she threatened in a weak and shaky voice.

Byakuya wrapped his arms around her. There was nothing in this world he wouldn't do for her. She was his wife, his soul mate, she was his everything.

"I will never do it again," he responded. "I promise."

And so they remained like that for a very long time. He was cradling her while listening to the sounds of her silent whimpers. The tears he felt on his cheek were not ones of sorrow but of joy and relief. Five years he had not been there for her. Sure they shared the same house in that time but he had given her no support, no communication, no attention. Was she mad at him for this? No, she was actually happy that her husband had come back to her. This realisation made Byakuya feel ashamed of himself. He felt like a monster for what he did to her and he knew that he was going to dwell on this for a long time.

"Byakuya, I see you have returned."

Byakuya looked up to the man standing in the doorway, letting him view his frown. Of all the times he could have interrupted, why did it have to be now? He could have done it earlier when he was being beaten to a pulp, he could have done it before he got home or he could waited for him to have his moment before he interrupted.

"Hello Grandfather."

Genrei Kuchiki did not miss the venom in his grandson's voice. He watched Byakuya and Hisana stand up and face him. Hisana ran her forearm across her face as if wiping tears away. Deciding not to take note of it, he turned his attention on Byakuya.

"Well done Byakuya," He said. "Captain Katsu told me that you completed your training and I thought that as the head of the Kuchiki Clan and your grandfather I should come here and congratulate you personally. You have brought pride to the family. Your father would have been proud."

"Yeah, sure," Byakuya replied. "I'm proud of myself too. Now can I you please leave."

"Byakuya!" Hisana exclaimed. "You can't talk to your grandfather like that!"

Genrei gave her a stern look, making her feel uneasy. Then he turned to back to Byakuya.

"Even those who come out of Rukon were taught to respect their elders," he said. "I hope you learn that one day."

"I will, when you give my wife the respect she deserves," he fired back.

There was silence for a moment. Both Genrei and Hisana were at a complete loss of words. Byakuya however had a lot to say, but decided it was wise to keep quiet.

When Byakuya had introduced Hisana to his family the entire clan had opposed the idea of a Kuchiki marrying a commoner from Rukongai. His grandfather had been one of those who had been against it the most. He made threats about disinheriting Byakuya, threats he had yet to carry out. For five years he had tried to persuade them to accept her and allow her into the family, half a decade he had begged his grandfather but it was all to no avail. After those five years he had decided "to hell with the family" and married her anyway.

"Now leave us alone," he said. "My wife and I have some catching up to do."

When Genrei didn't budge Byakuya decided to ask again, this time his hand reaching for his zanpakutou.

"Leave us alone," he repeated.

Both Genrei and Hisana were surprised by the strength of spiritual pressure that met them. Hisana fell to her knees as the riatsu was just too much for her to handle. There was no doubt that it was stronger Genrei's.

Genrei was unfazed by the amount of spirit energy released by his grandson. But he knew that he had to give him time with his wife. He turned his back on them and walked away.

"I expect you in my office early in the morning tomorrow," He said before he disappeared. "We have a lot to discuss."

A moment of silence passed after his departure. Then Hisana turned to her husband. A disapproving look was on her face. It momentarily disappeared when she coughed.

"Hisana, are you sick?" Byakuya asked with a concerned tone.

"No," she answered. "Anyway, that was rude."

Byakuya sighed. "He deserved it." He smiled as he looked into her eyes. "But let's forget about it. We have a lot of catching up to do."

He took her in his arms again and kissed her passionately.

* * *

Sereitei: Shihoin Estate

Kei took a deep breath and exhaled it before he knocked on the door. He took a step back and waited for a reply.

He had kept his word about taking a nap after the captains' meeting, and a long one it was. He had slept through the whole day and had woken up in the middle of the night. Waking up to find himself in an empty house was kind of unsettling as there was a lonely vibe to it, so he had decided to seek the company of an old friend.

I just hope I didn't make a mistake coming here, he thought to himself.

A second later he was sent flying into the door. He crashed through it and hit the floor hard.

He pushed the pain out of his mind and tried to get to his feet but felt cold steel touch his throat. Trying to asses the vitality of his situation he looked up to his assailant. A petite silhouette leaned in, its face just inches from his own. Judging by the assailant's size he concluded that it was a female.

"Charlene?"

To his relief, the blade was pulled away from his throat… only for him to get a punch in the face.

"Ouch! What was that for?" he protested.

"I warned you not to call me that," a familiar voice said softly.

Kei smiled to annoy her… until he realised she couldn't see his face in the dark.

"That's your name isn't it?" He asked.

"Was my name," she replied in an irritated voice. "When I started training to be an assassin it was changed to Soifon."

"Who cares what your name is now. To me you'll always be Charlene."

"Go to Hell!" she retorted. "How did you even find out? Not even Yu-"

The memory of her former mentor was too much for her to handle. If she thought about her he would have to comfort her for the rest of the night, and that was not what he had come for.

Thinking fast, he lifted his head and kissed her.

* * *

Rukongai: District 13: 103 years ago

He was a delinquent in of Rukongai, one that was likely not to live long. Everyday the inhabitants of the Rukon district watched as the vendors chased him up and down the streets. He was labelled troublesome because of this, though no one thought about the reason he always stole food.

Unlike most inhabitants of Rukon he needed the food to survive. He lost weight and felt weak when he didn't eat, a day without a meal actually made his stomach rumble as a result of hunger. Having been alone for a long time he had no one to take care of his needs.

Kei still remembered those horrible days. The days he slept outside in the cold night without a blanket. He could still feel the chill of the night breeze on his skin sometimes. No one liked him. No one wanted to be near him. In his village he was treated as some kind of death symbol because people always got sick around him. He never understood the reason for years.

That was until one fateful day when a beautiful dark skinned woman in a shinigami captain's cloak had decided to visit his village. For whatever reason he never found out. All he remembered was the mistake made by trying to rob her. The captain sensed his spiritual pressure long before he attempted anything. By the time his hand crept into her pocket she had hers on his arm.

"Well, well, well," she murmured as she looked at him. "What do we have here?"

"That kid is a thief," one of the villages stated. "Let's teach him a lesson. Let's make sure he never steals again."

Kei panicked as he watched him draw a kitchen knife and move to his side. He tried to struggle but the woman gave him a stern look and told him not to move. As the villager caught his hand and lifted his knife Kei closed his eyes. He didn't want to witness his dismemberment.

"Touch a hair on his head and you will have me to deal with," the woman said quietly.

He opened his eyes and looked at the woman, shocked at what he had just heard. Surely she can't be trying to protect him? But the shocked expression on the villager's face said otherwise.

"B-but ma'am—"

"That's enough," the woman decided. "I will personally make sure you are all compensated for your troubles on condition that you leave the boy alone."

Though the villagers were hesitant to let him go they made the wiser choice and left the young boy and the woman in the middle of the street.

"What's your name?" the woman asked.

"K-Kei Katsu," he answered in a shaky voice.

"Come with me," she ordered.

From that day on he went hungry again.

* * *

Sereitei: Shihoin Dojo; 85 years ago

"I don't understand why Lady Yuruichi keeps you around. You're so weak."

Yuruichi's bodyguard was a pain in the arse. Her behaviour was antagonistic towards everyone except her precious "Lady Yuruichi." Now she had the audacity to call him weak to his face. It made his blood boil.

"I'll show you weak!" he said through gritted teeth as he got his feet.

He ran to her with his fists raised. When he got close he swung a punch at her. She dodged it and countered with a kick to the chest, sending him backwards. He tried punching her again but she countered with the same kick. This time he was prepared and managed to catch her foot. Then he swung her with all his strength and sent her flying. He was disappointed when she turned a somersault in the air and landed on her feet instead of her back.

"That was impressive but not good enough to beat me weakling," she taunted him.

"Oh yeah?"

He ran to her again and swung his foot at her. She managed to avoid it by making a back handspring. He followed her by flipping forwards, his foot aimed at her left shoulder. To his surprise she managed to sidestep him and deliver a swift kick to his face, sending him to the floor. This time she did not wait for him to recover. She lifted her foot vertically and sent it crashing down on him. If he hadn't acted then, Kei pretty much doubted he would have survived.

"Hado number one: Sho!"He shouted before her foot made contact with his skull.

She was pushed away from him and crashed against the roof. She was tough, that he could tell because she managed to land on her feet although the impact she had made when she crashed against roof had been strong

"You bastard," she shouted. "That was cheating!"

"What are you saying?" he retorted. "You just tried to kill me."

"Fine let's see how you handle this you cheating bastard."

As she approached him he raised his hands and uttered an incantation.

"Disintegrate you black dog of Rondanin! Look upon yourself with horror and then claw out your own throat. Bakudo 9: Geki!"

Before she could launch herself on him a red light trapped and paralysed her. Her eyes widened as he took a step towards her. The look in his eyes told her that he was going to take revenge on her for beating him up earlier.

"The two of you should stop this foolishness," came Yuruichi's voice from behind them. "I already have a difficult time putting up with Genre's brat of a grandson. Don't you add to that."

They both turned to her as she entered the Shihoin dojo. Soifon, upon realising that she was able to move again, pointed an accusing finger at him.

"We were practicing Hakuda, but he used Kido," she scowled.

Yuruichi smiled at her bodyguard/student. "I've noticed that. I asked Tessai to teach him in his free time."

"What about me?" Soifon asked with a hint of jealousy in her voice.

"You're my student," Yuruichi answered. "I'll do that when you are ready."

Soifon frowned and Kei took the opportunity to taunt her.

"The real reason is that you totally suck," he whispered to her.

"I hate you," Soifon declared then and there.

"Feeling's mutual," he responded.

Yuruichi decided to stay out of the two pre-teenagers' verbal war. They described each other so colourfully she couldn't help but giggle.

"They'll never get along."

* * *

Sereitei: Shihoin Estate; 60 years ago

Kei had just been relived from his soul reaper duties to find the Shihoin estate in chaos. Everyone was going berserk, acting as if Armageddon had arrived. Fearing the worst, he ran to the main house. He didn't knock before he kicked the doors of the Shihoin head's audience chamber. Soifon lay at Yuruichi's "throne", crying uncontrollably.

"What happened," he asked as he kneeled down to pick her up.

Soifon, one of the toughest people he had ever met, cried like a baby on that day.

"She's gone," she said as she threw herself in his arms. "Lady Yuruichi abandoned me."

He wrapped his arms around her for comfort. They remained like that the whole night.

* * *

Sereitei: Shihoin Estate; present day

They had been close ever since. During that time they were both at loss and very upset. Soifon had lost her idol and sole purpose for living. Kei had lost a mother figure(Yuruichi), a great Kido teacher(Tessai) and a father figure(Kisuke). The two of them found comfort in each other.

They became lovers, but later decided that it would be better if they just remained friends… with benefits.

Kei looked at the Soifon's face as she slept with her head resting on his chest. Her naked body felt so good against his. He wanted to go for another round but decided not to take advantage of her. She looked so innocent and vulnerable in her sleep, the exact opposite of what she was when she was awake.

**-END-**

**AN: Thanks for reading. Please review.**


	4. Chapter 4: Shinigami Daily Lives

**AN: enjoy the chapter**

**Chapter 4: Shinigami Daily Lives**

* * *

Sereitei: Gotei 13

In the Thirteen Court Guard Squads most squads have a specific duty. Squad 11 is the fighting squad (most soul reapers felt differently about it though), Squad 12 is the Research and Development Centre, Squad 4 is the healing squad and Squad 2 is composed of the Punishment Unit and the Stealth Force. The other squads didn't have specific duties but some were unofficially known to do certain duties. For example Squad 1 is known as the leading squad and Squad 13 is unofficially recognized as the squad responsible for the other squads had nothing special to recognize by, though Squad 6 was seen as the model squad in the entire Sereitei.

It was no surprise that the other squads have nothing special to be recognized by. Squad 8 had the laziest captain in Gotei history, he always forced his duties on his lieutenant. Both captain and lieutenant of Squad 10 were known to neglect their duties. The captain of Squad 9 kept ranting on about justice while the Squad 7 captain talked about inner strength. Squad 3's captain could care less about his squad's reputation and Squad 5… nobody knew much about them.

The only thing known about the fifth squad is that they had the nicest leader in the Gotei 13. Sosuke Aizen was the most soft-hearted soul reaper. His charisma motivated all around him and it encouraged loyalty towards him. Of all the thirteen squads it was the fifth that had the happiest members. Genrei Kuchiki's squad might have been the model squad but Aizen was definitely the model captain.

The only setback to the fifth captain's reputation was his lieutenant, a light purple haired man with a smile that freaked everyone out. Lieutenant Ichimaru always had a condescending smile about him. Though no one ever saw his eyes most soul reapers thought the reason he always kept his eyes closed was to conceal the laughter in them. It was almost as if he knew something they didn't.

"It has been two days since that barbarian of a captain Kiganjo left for Zaraki," Gin Ichimaru his said to captain as they walked through the Sereitei, monitoring the other squads. "Could something have happened to him?"

"I don't think so," Aizen replied. "Though he is an embarrassment to the title Kenpachi, Kiganjo is capable of taking care of himself."

"To be honest with you captain I think Kiganjo is the weakest of the thirteen captains," Gin told his captain. "I think the task given to him was just too much for him to handle."

"Wishful thinking won't make Yamamoto send us to investigate the occurrences in District 80," Aizen responded.

Gin gave his captain one of his trademark smirks.

"Let us not pretend you don't want to find out whatever is responsible for the disappearance of those seated officers."

Two bursts of spiritual pressure hit as they made their way past the Squad 8 barracks.

"They are back at that," Gin stated. "I was wondering how long it would take for those two to resume their pitiful sparring."

"You would be surprised by the strength of those two," Aizen said. "There are few captains whose fighting abilities I acknowledge. Those two are on that list." He stopped in front of the barrack. "Why don't we pay them a visit?"

Gin just smiled his freaky grin. "Sure Captain, why not."

As they approached the entrance to the barracks Aizen mention one more thing that would have surprised anyone who knew him.

"The case of the seated officer disappearances doesn't affect me at all. If the task proves too much for Kiganjo however, I might consider looking further into it."

They stepped into the barracks and found most of the space has been cleared to allow the two captains, Shunsui Kyoraku and Kei Katsu, to swing their zanpakutou at each other. There was almost no effort in their swings yet the spirit energy released into the atmosphere was incredible. On the other side stood three figures watching the "sparring". It was the thirteenth captain, his lieutenant and the eighth lieutenant.

"Hey there Jushiro," Aizen greeted. He extended his hand to lieutenants Shiba and Ise. "I see you're out of bed today, has you illness disappeared?"

"How I wish for that Sosuke," Ukitake answered with a sigh. "I have a very interesting case of tuberculosis. Most of the time it's there and then sometimes it just disappears."

"That surely is horrible," Gin commented. "You never know which days you will be healthy or which ones you will be sick. Maybe you won't even know when it will become deadly. You could die today, tomorrow or a few years. Thing is you don't know how long you have to live."

Captain Ukitake gasped but quickly reverted back to his usual demeanour. His lieutenant's response was however more over-reactive than that.

"How dare you speak that way to my captain!" Kaien Shiba said angrily, his hand fingering the hilt of his zanpakutou.

This action was meant to be threatening to the fifth lieutenant but he took it as anything but a threat.

"Oh relax Lieutenant Shiba," he said casually. "You take everything too seriously. It was only a joke."

Now Kaien was really mad. He felt insulted, not by what his fellow lieutenant had said but by the tone he had used. That same condescending tone he used when he addressed all soul reapers below the captain rank. Before he could do anything about it Aizen interfered.

"Forgive me Captain Ukitake and Lieutenant Shiba," he said. "My lieutenant has a loose tongue, but he doesn't mean what he says. Isn't that true Gin?"

Gin smiled at his captain. His eyes were shut as always.

"Indeed Captain," he replied.

Kaien was still mad at his fifth counterpart, but he let go of his sword. That was as close to a sincere apology Gin would ever come close to.

With the incident forgotten everyone went back to watching the third and eighth captains "spar".

"Jerks," Nanao said under her breath.

"Interesting that you would make such a comment Lieutenant Ise," Aizen pointed out.

"My captain is one of the oldest and wisest captains in the Gotei 13," she replied, "yet he spends most of his time either drinking or sleeping and when Kei is around they play this stupid game of theirs. They neglect their duties and we lieutenants are left to take care of everything."

Jushiro saw the frustration in her eyes and he gazed at her in a manner that showed everyone he was a bit hurt by her statement.

"She doesn't mean you captain!" Kaien quickly said. "Everyone knows the reason I cover for you is because you are too sick to do it yourself sometimes. You can't really be blamed for that."

Nanao nodded to show that she agreed with whatever her fellow lieutenant had just stated.

Before any of them could utter another word Lieutenant Kuchiki appeared next to them.

"Byakuya," Gin said with a sly smile. "You came to watch these captains do their thing."

"I have no interest in such meaningless games," Byakuya answered, his tone void of emotion.

Captain Katsu immediately stopped his game and shunpoed to his lieutenant's side.

Something must have happened. Byakuya never used his indifferent tone unless there was a serious situation. Before he could ask what the matter was a Hell Butterfly flew through a window and landed on Nanao's finger. Then everyone in the room heard a voice.

"THE FOLLOWING IS A VERY IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT. ALL LIEUTENANTS AND HIGHER RANKED OFFICERS ARE REQUIRED TO GO TO SQUAD 1 HEADQUARTERS IMMEDIATELY."

The next second everyone vanished via flash step.

* * *

Sereitei: Squad 1 Headquarters

"What's going on?" Kaien asked when the eight of them arrived.

"Rumour has it that Captain Kiganjo and his lieutenant just arrived."

They turned to look at a red haired woman with a rather large chest approach them. Two individuals' eyes lowered to her chest level, an act that annoyed a certain bespectacled lieutenant. The red head blushed that the individuals had taken interest in her breasts, until she saw a smiling face among them.

"Gin?" she said uncertainly.

He smiled upon hearing her call his name. "Ah, Rangiku. It's great to see you again."

Rangiku eyed him with a sad expression. There was a bit of longing in it as well. Gin's eyes were still shut, but there was something in his smile that was different. It was faltering. He no longer looked as comfortable as he always was.

Believed to have the keenest yes in the Soul Society, Shunsui Kyoraku was the only one who caught this reaction.

Interesting, he thought. It would appear there is someone who has the ability to make Lieutenant Ichimaru uneasy.

"ALL CAPTAINS AND LIEUTENANTS ATTENTION!" cried the voice of Lieutenant Sasakibe. "THE HEAD CAPTAIN WISHES TO ADDRESS YOU ALL."

All conversations immediately ceased. The captains arranged themselves in their usual positions, only this time they had their lieutenants standing next to them.

"A few minutes ago Captain Kiganjo and his lieutenant arrived. They are both in critical condition and are now being treated in the Squad 4 medical wing."

Everyone gasped. The eleventh captain and his lieutenant injured on a mission? That was unheard of.

"How did this happen?" Captain Komomura asked.

"We have yet to gain that information," Yamamoto replied. "That is the reason I brought you all here."

The highest ranked officers in the entire Thirteen Court Guard Squads gave the Head-Captain a series of puzzled stares.

"What are you talking about old man?" Shunsui asked.

"Captain Kiganjo is unconscious and will likely remain so for a few days," Yamamoto announced "But his lieutenant is still awake. I need three people outside his squad that he trusts. I want them to go and learn what happened in Zaraki."

The only friend that the eleventh lieutenant had was Kaien Shiba so he was the first choice. Jushiro Ukitake was also chosen because he was the most caring captain and Kaname Tousen because he and the lieutenant were on better terms and he was with anyone else.

"Now that the three have decided you can all go," Yamamoto told them. "In an hour we will meet here where I will expect the chosen three to relay the information they get. Dismissed!"

A second later the room was empty.

**-END-**

**AN: Okay, the first four chapters are done. These are what I would call the introduction chapters. In these chapters I named the characters that matter. I also mentioned their relationships and showed a bit of their history so I don't have to go in it later as I really hate it when flashbacks appear in the middle of an important events [eg. Fourth Ninja War(Naruto)]. The fun begins in the next chapter. **


	5. Chapter 5: The Demon of District 80

**CHAPTER 5: THE DEMON OF DISTRICT 80**

* * *

Sereitei: Squad 4 Hospital

What was he doing here? Where was here anyway and were was his captain. The last thing he remembered was falling down at the northern gate of the Sereitei and then passing out, but for all he knew that could have been a dream.

He lifted his head and took in his surroundings. He was in a hospital. That he could tell from all the blue sheets on his bed. There was a small table on the side of the bed with half a dozen bottles of foul smelling medicine. His eyes wondered to the rest of the room. There was one other bed in there and it was occupied by-

"Captain!"

He tried to get out of bed and check on his captain, but found himself falling when his feet met the ground. He would have landed on his face had someone not caught him.

"Careful there buddy," a familiar voice said. "You're pushing yourself too hard."

He looked up, into the face of a spiky spikey haired lieutenant. The man smiled and helped him back into his bed.

"Ka-Kaien," he said, struggling to get his words out.

"Relax there buddy," Kaien said. "You came here in a pretty bad condition."

He relaxed and looked at his captain who lay in the other bed. His entire body was covered in bandages and his blood was seeping through them.

"Don't worry about that Maki," Kaien said. "Captain Unohana said he will be okay."

"But-"

"He's not our concern," Kaien interrupted. "We were sent here for you."

We?

Just as he finished asking himself that two figure appeared before his eyes. One had long white hair and the other was dark skinned with long purple hair spotting a few braids. He had light purple glasses that hid his sightless eyes.

"Captain Ukitake? Captain Tousen? What are you doing here?"

Ukitake thought about the best way to tell him that the Head-Captain had sent them to talk to him about events that may or may not have traumatized him. However Tousen beat him to the punch with his blunt honest.

"Yamamoto-sensei sent us here to find out what happened in in District 80."

Remembering did not do him any favours. He took a deep breath and told the story from the moment they reached their destinations.

* * *

Rukongai: District 80; 23 hours ago

"Well," Maki Ichinose said as he looked at the village in valley. "This isn't as bad as the other soul reapers say, its much worse.

What they were looking at looked more like the ruins of an ancient civilization than an inhabited island. Every structure was destroyed or in the process of destruction. There were fires coming from certain houses, if you could really call them that, and people running around screaming and shouting. The atmosphere around the valley was chaotic.

When he and his captain got into town he made sure to inspect the place. There was no trace of a hollow or anything in resemblance, making him wonder about the real reason they were sent hear. It was probably not because of some hollows. They were probably sent here to bring order.

He asked around if they had any hollows lately. They all claimed to have been attacked by the beasts, but someone had apparently taken care of them.

"Did ten shinigami pass by this place lately?" he asked a man in torn and bloodied rags.

The man shook his head. "I don' know nothin' 'bout no soul reapers."

"This is useless captain," he said after they've been interrogating villagers for a few hours, all up to no avail. "We are wasting our time here. There are no hollows in this area."

Kiganjo realised that his lieutenant had made a valid statement but was unwilling to quit. He had come to Zaraki to fight and a fight he was going to get, even if it was from one of the inhabitants.

"They will come," he said, more to himself than Maki. "They have to come."

Maki looked around. There were two men fighting in a distance with above average bursts of reiatsu emanating from them. A few feet away from him there was a woman trying to shield two little children from the reiatsu at the cost of her own body. The spirit energy around them was so strong she had gotten a nosebleed as a result.

Stupid woman, Maki thought. Why is she so close to them, with children?

When the two men's swords clashed again a wave of spiritual pressure way stronger than the first ones was released. Both the woman and the children screamed as they were blown away by the raw power, sending them into a nearby house(ruin).

Having had enough of everything, Maki drew his sword and flashed stepped to the two men. He did not notice that his captain had drawn his sword too and was headed for the same two men, but for a different reason. When he got there both men lay at Kiganjo's feet, dead.

"Captain what have you-"

Before he could finish talking the woman had been watching the battle dashed out of the ruins, dagger in hand and pointed at his captain.

"You monster!" she screamed as she got closer to them. "You killed my husbands!"

Both captain and lieutenant were puzzled by this statement. Husbands?

They never got a chance to verbalize the question because at that moment they felt a reiatsu far stronger than that of the two men who were just killed by Kiganjo. It was so strong the woman sank to her knees before the force of spirit energy completely overwhelmed her, rendering her unconscious.

"Who the hell is making this?" Kiganjo asked, gripping his sword tightly.

Maki, detecting the excitement in his voice, looked at him and was about to tell him not to lose sight of their assignment. They were here to investigate, so he shouldn't kill whoever was behind the massive wave of spiritual pressure. Then something in the sky caught his attention.

Something was happening above the village. The clouds had started moving rapidly and the sky appeared to be bending. Then a clawed hand appeared out of nowhere and reaped a hole in the sky.

"Shit," Maki cursed, gripping his katana tightly.

That was a Garganta. So the hollows seen in this area were not the normal kind. No wonder the seated officers never made it back. This type of hollow was way out of their league. They were up against Menos Grande.

As the hole in the sky opened up more he became nervous. He had heard about Menos Grande, but he had never faced one before.

"Prepare yourself," he whispered.

The clawed hand stopped tearing at the sky and withdrew. Maki looked up, expecting to see a massive hollow walking towards them while firing a Cero. The three hollows he saw standing in the empty void were definitely not what he expected.

The one in the middle was white with a canine appearance, though instead of hair it had rough and spikey scales. Judging by the way it looked it was probably the one who had opened the Garganta. On its right was a red insect-like hollow with ten legs and a green bat-like hollow on its left.

Maki felt his heartrate increase. What the hell were these things? They looked nothing like the hollows he's encountered. Their masks were so out of the norm he considered the possibility that they were not hollows, but their spiritual pressure was unmistakable. They were definitely hollows.

He was about to ask his captain what kind of hollows they were, but before he could do that Kiganjo verbalized the question.

Oh great, he thought. Now even my captain doesn't know what we are facing.

He looked up at the sky, into the empty void. The hollows noticed him staring and returned the favour. A second later they vanished from sight and appeared in front of him.

His eyes widened and opened his mouth to say something, but didn't get a chance. The white hollow swiped its paw at him. His natural reflexes kicked in, making him bring the sword up to defend. He had expected the blade to slice through the hand and was pleasantly surprised when his zanpakutou bounced off its paw ("What the hell"). He took a step back, but the hollow continued its assault, forcing him shunpo away.

"What kind of hollow are you?" he asked it when he was at a safe distance.

The canine hollow gave him what he suspected was a smile before it answered in a voice that sent shivers down his spine. "The kind that's gonna kill you."

His instincts told him to get out of there and they were right because as soon as he flash stepped away the hollow appeared where he had been standing.

He turned to face it again. His gaze momentarily drifted to Captain Kiganjo, who had the upperhand in his fight against the other two hollows. The brought his focus back to the hollow. Its reiatsu was skyrocketing. He could not afford to hold back against him, it would cost him dearly. Gripping the hilt with both hands, he swung it vertically in a circular motion while his zanpakutou's command.

"Flash and burst… Nijigatsume!"

The blade shone brightly and majestically, emitting a bright light. Then the hollow felt several sharp but unseen objects attack it. Maki smiled, of all the abilities of his zanpakutou this was his favourite. Whenever he swung his zanpakutou like that it emits sharp burst of ultraviolet light in all directions towards his opponent. Since ultraviolet light is invisible to the eye it would look like the person is being attacked by invisible blades. This hollow would not survive such an attack.

When he finished the attack the hollow still stood however, nearly unscathed. Maki brushed off his disappointment. He hadn't perfected the technique yet and he had never used it against such a strong opponent. Out of the corner of his eye he could see that his captain was still dominating those two others. It made him ease up a bit.

"You're a disappointment shinigami," the hollow said. "I've battled others like you but with an obvious difference. They were far stronger than you."

Maki growled and leapt towards his opponent, his sword held high. Before he could strike the canine hollow it vanished. He heard a swooshing sound carried by the wind to the back of his left ear. He realised that the creature had moved behind him and tried to face it but wasn't fast enough. The hollow slammed its tail into his gut, sending him flying several dozen yards away. He landed hard on his back and was unable to stand for a few half a minute. When he managed it he did it with a degree of difficulty. He felt sore as hell. While looking for his opponent he noticed the village. The fires in District 80 had grown as a result of their duels.

We have to end this, he thought to himself while his eyes searched for his captain. His eyes widened when he saw him all bloody, pinned down by the insect hollow.

"Captain!" he roared and shunpoed to him.

However, half way through he was caught and slammed into the ground by the canine hollow.

"Foolish shinigami," it said, baring its teeth at him. "Do you think you can save your friend when you can't even save yourself?"

Maki remained quiet.

"I grow tired of your annoying weakness," it continued. "Time to end it."

It opened its mouth and moved it closer to his neck in order to rip his throat out.

* * *

Sereitei: Squad 4 Hospital; present time

"What happened next?" Kaien asked. "How is it you're still alive?"

Maki thought back to that moment when he thought his life was over…

* * *

Rukongai: District 80; 17 huors ago

It opened its mouth and moved it closer to his neck in order to rip his throat out. He would have died had a sword not appeared out of thin air and blocked it.

"My, my, my," a voice came from behind him. "You soul reapers never cease to amaze me with your weakness. Now why don't you get out of here and let me handle this."

Maki inspected the sword. It was crooked and dented with a blunt blade. There seemed to be missing pieces on the sharp side of the blade, giving it an irregular zig-zag pattern. Maki's eyes travelled to the man holding the blade. He was an ogre of a man (not bigger than his captain though) with long spikey hair. He wore rags, identifying himself as a native of the village, one that was clearly very different.

The level of his reiatsu was incredible. Maki found himself struggling to breathe in the presence of this man. He looked into the man's eyes, which shone bright yellow with power.

"W-w-w-who are y-y-you?" he struggled to get the words out of his mouth.

The man was about to answer when the canine swiped its claw at him and drew gallons of blood. The man took a step back and clutched his chest. He made sounds which Maki first thought were from the agony. When he listened more closely he realised that the man was suppressing laughter. Then he lost it.

"Ha, ha, ha, ha," he laughed. "You're the first person to cut me in a long time so I'm guessing you're strong. This will be fun. Ha, ha, ha…"

He charged the hollow while uttering his maniacal laugh. The hollow did likewise and they slammed into each, realising waves of reiatsu more powerful than he had ever seen, about ninety percent of it came from the mysterious man. The environment was affected by his spiritual pressure. Trees seemed to age, rocks turned to dust and everyone apart from those who had been battling fell to their knees suffocating.

Amazing, Maki thought, I've never seen anything like this.

When the two separated the canine was missing its tail. The hollow growled loud and deep, it opened its mouth and began charging a red orb in its mouth.

"A Cero," Maki whispered. "Impossible. Only a Menos Grande can fire one of those."

The reiatsu come from the Cero was so intimidating he decided to heed the strange man's advice and leave. He flash stepped to his captain, who was no longer protected, and grabbed him. Then he shunpoed away, just before the hollow released the Cero.

Maki and his captain were a safe distance from the village when the Cero was released. Its destructive power was like a wild fire, destroying everything in its path, including the hill they had been standing on earlier before they entered the village.

Maki used his sixth sense of detecting reiatsu to find out if anyone had survived the Cero. At first he got nothing, then reiatsu signatures started appearing everywhere in the village. Then they were blocked out by a massive reiatsu signature that had a yellow aura emanating from it. Maki knew that without a doubt that the man had been victorious in his fight against the three hollows. Knowing that there was nothing left to do he lifted his captain onto his shoulders and began to limp slowly and painfully back to the northern gate.

**-END-**

**AN: Since he's not a soul reaper in this fanfic I figured I should at least put him in one chapter because I consider Bleach without him a crime. I'll prepare my next chapter and update as soon as I can. Since it will probably be my last update for 2013 I just want to wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Yeah! Until next time, in the meantime, please review.**


	6. Chapter 6: The Power of a Shinigami

**AN: I forgot to mention in my previous note that these guys don't know about Adhuchas and Vasto Lordes, now you know. Chapter 6 is here, enjoy.**

**CHAPTER 6: THE POWER OF A SHINIGAMI**

* * *

Rukongai; near District 80

Byakuya couldn't believe what he was doing. Both he and his captain had clearly not opted to be on this mission, yet the old man had done so anyway. Now he was heading to District 80 with his reluctant captain as well as the highest ranked officers of Squad 5.

After Ukitake and Co had come back from their meeting with the eleventh lieutenant and relayed his story a lot of people had taken interest in the investigation. Kuroutsuchi naturally took interest when he heard of an unknown Hollow specie that was stronger than a Menos Grande. Soifon offered to send the Stealth Force to deal with them if they surface again and even Aizen had taken interest in them. The biggest surprise was that after Tousen mentioned a golden-eyed man who took down the hollows on his own even Unohana had volunteered to go, but the old man had not allowed her because she would apparently be needed in the Sereitei.

The Head-Captain had gone on further and decided that two captains and two lieutenants would be sent this time lest the same thing that happened to Kiganjo and his lieutenant happens again. The Squad 5 pair was selected and so was the Squad 3 pair, much to the protest of Kuroutsuchi and Katsu. They had not volunteered, but the Old Man didn't give a damn and so the two of them were paired with Aizen and Gin.

"You're not happy about this are you?" his captain's voice asked.

Byakuya looked up and noticed that everyone was in front of him. He must have been running slowly. But then again he was hesitant to leave his wife. Last night he had discovered that she was sick, so sick she shouldn't be out of bed. According to the family doctor she had been diagnosed with the illness five years ago and had been told to rest but she had never done so because she had been desperately trying to find her long lost sister. When he had confronted her about it she then proceeded to tell him her story.

Byakuya knew much of it, dying in the World of the Living and coming to live in the Soul Society just to endure hardships. What he didn't know is that because of those hardships she was forced to abandon her sister because she couldn't take care of both of them. Now the guilt of that act was eating her from the inside. Last night he had hugged his crying wife tightly and promised her that he was going to help her find her missing sister.

Now he was here instead of being there with her and it was all because of the Yamamoto. Damn him, and damn the entire Gotei 13. If it were not for his grandfather and his crappy speeches about duty he would not have joined them in the first place so damn him too.

"I'm not," he answered.

Kei sighed. "Neither am I but we don't have a choice in the matter so quit whining. The sooner we get this thing done with the sooner we can get back to our normal lives."

Byakuya nodded before both he and his captain shunpoed towards the other squad's officers.

"You done already with your heart-to-heart talk?" Gin asked them.

Both of them ignored him and turned to Aizen.

"How far are we from Zaraki?" Kei asked.

"Just half an hour," the bespectacled captain replied.

Sure after half an hour they were all looking down at the village of District 80. It looked like it was hit by a series of natural disasters.

"I'll go and check on the people," Kei announced. "You guys go ahead look for any signs of the hollows and the strange yellow eyed man."

"I'm coming with you," Gin said, much to the surprise of the others.

After a moment of silence Kei shrugged. "Sure, why not? The more the merrier."

Aizen smiled and put his hand on an uncomfortable Byakuya's shoulder. "I guess that means the two of us are going to be working together. Let's not waste time then."

"We'll catch up with you guys real soon," Kei said before he shunpoed away.

"Have fun," Gin saluted and followed suit.

A few seconds of silence… then Aizen spoke.

"So Byakuya. What do you suggest we do? Should we check for leads on the saviour of lieutenant Ichinose or should we ask around about the mysterious hollows?"

"The man is probably like any other inhabitant of Zaraki," Byakuya answered professionally, "a savage. We should ask the villagers about the hollows and what their purpose is for visiting this place."

Aizen kept that smile of his that made him the most popular Captain. "I guess we will have to start with that then."

He flash stepped towards the village. A reluctant Byakuya followed him.

* * *

Kei Katsu was not a man who advertised a shocked expression, but now he couldn't help it. Gin was helping him treat some of the people in the village and he looked happy to help them. The smile on his face was not the usual creepy wide one but a slight and honest looking one. Lieutenant Ichimaru was a caring person!

No one would believe him if he told them about this. Gin? The lieutenant whose pleasant words brought fear to most of his colleagues, the man who could make a captain's skin crawl with his smile, the same one who was considered a sadist by most? It was easier to believe in the Easter Bunny.

"You seemed surprised by what I'm doing," the purple haired lieutenant said.

"I am actually," Katsu answered with a smile as he patched a ten-year old girl's leg. "I never would have expected this from you."

Gin murmured something he didn't hear. He opened his mouth to ask him what he was saying, but was halted when an unimaginable level of spiritual pressure hit him.

What the hell, he thought.

Gin seemed to take it more casually. "My, my, my. It seems Lieutenant Ichinose was not exaggerating after all. This ought to be quite interesting."

* * *

Byakuya and Aizen were getting nowhere with questioning the villagers about the hollows. They were about to call it a quits and ask about the yellow eyed man instead, but that was when they felt a huge wave of reiatsu.

"What the hell is this?" Byakuya asked.

Aizen looked up and saw two huge hands appear out of thin air and tear the sky, revealing a dark empty void. "They're coming."

A second later Gin and Kei appeared in front of them.

"Looks like they came sooner than we expected," Captain Katsu said. "Get ready."

The two lieutenants drew their zanpakutou and waited.

They had expected the weird looking hollows that the eleventh lieutenant had described to come out. What actually came out was a swarm of Menos Grande.

"What the hel-" Kei Katsu didn't get the chance to finish as one of them opened its mouth and fired a Cero at them.

He was about to move out of the way, but something caught his eye. Aizen had raised his hand to meet the doom blast head on.

Idiot, Katsu thought. You'll be turned to ash by that thing.

He was about to rescue his fellow captain but stopped when he saw the Cero make contact with Aizen's palm. He had expected it to turn to ash immediately, but that was not what happened. Aizen was actually holding it back and he didn't seem to be making much of an effort. Then he swiped his hand, redirecting the blast to a nearby forest. There was a huge explosion in the vicinity.

Both captain and lieutenant of Squad 3 marvelled at this. Such destructive power? Blocked with one hand? Both of them had always had the idea that Aizen was one of the weakest captains in the Gotei 13. Clearly they had been wrong.

"You know better than to let down your guard in such a situation Captain Katsu," Aizen addressed him.

Kei recovered and raised his hands towards the horde. "Right. Hado 4. Byakurai!"

A burst of pale lightning shot from his hands and tore through the mask of one of the Menos Grande, making it disintegrate.

On his left Aizen raised his hand and used a Hado spell too. "Hado 32, Okasen."

A white yellowish light was fired from his hand and disintegrated half a dozen of them.

Kei knew it was immature, but he didn't want to be outclassed by another captain so he decided to step up the level of his Kido.

"Hado 73, Soren Sokatsui!"

Two bluish white rays of energy shot from his hand and took out nearly two dozen of the Hollow numbers. Kei turned back to Aizen and offered him a smile which said a lot about what he was thinking. Beat that!

The lieutenants were not going to watch their captains have all the fun. They each raised their swords and began to release them with the commands.

"Scatter, Sengbonzakura," Byakuya murmured.

His zanpakutou's blade instantly scattered into a thousand cherry blossoms, which made their way over to the horde of Menos Grande and destroyed half of them.

"Pierce his flesh," Gin said as he pointed the sword at the Menos Grande. "Shinso!"

The blade of his dagger-like zanpakutou extended to unimaginable lengths and cut up the rest of the Menos. Then both lieutenants sealed their weapons but still held them in their hands.

There was silence for a moment as the soul reapers looked at each other as if to ask if that was all. Surely there was more to come. The Garganta was still open.

Sure enough their question was answered. "Impressive display soul reapers, very impressive indeed."

The voice that came from the Garganta was deep. It sounded like it belonged to a demon from the darkest pits of Hell.

Then the reiatsu in the atmosphere thickened. Out of the Garganta came eight hollows the likes of which all four shinigami had never seen. They were all sorts of colours ranging from yellow to red to purple. From left to right their descriptions were as follow: a yellow scorpion, a green leopard with white spots, a pink spider, a red monster that looked like a cross between a primate and an insect. It had the upper body of a primate but had the lower body of some insect with a stinger. There was another that was purple in colour with a horse-like appearance, a green hornet, a blue lizard and an orange gorilla-like monster. All these beasts, though different in appearance all had a similarity. Each had a white mask covering its face and had red eyes that bore into their souls.

The primate-insect stepped forward and spoke in the voice they heard earlier.

"An impressive display by you soul reapers, but I'm afraid your luck has run out."

Byakuya's comeback was to release his zanpakutou once again and show them whose time had run out. Captain Aizen had other plans though. He stepped forward and observed them. Among the four shinigami he was clearly the tallest, but these creatures were at least twice as big as he was. That did not intimidate him or his colleagues in the least bit however.

"Greetings friends," he said casually. Both Kei and Byakuya shot him glares which he ignored. "What brings you to the Soul Society?"

"We came here to prove our superiority as hollows over your shinigami race," the leopard-like hollow said matter-of-factly.

None of the shinigami were fazed by this news. They clearly showed disinterest in the hollow's bold claim. That was except for Captain Aizen, who was curious to learn more about these mysterious creatures.

"Do you mind if we trade information about our species?" he asked. Not waiting for a reply he drew his zanpakutou and held it upside down in front of them. "We soul reapers each carry a katana. Within this weapon is the spirit of our zanpakutou, which manifests itself when called out by the wielder."

"We already know that," another hollow, the horse-like one said. "You're not the first soul reapers we have faced and you are definitely not the last ones we will crush."

Aizen ignored the last part of the hollow's speech and continued. "Then surely you must know that each zanpakutou is unique with its own name and own command. Take my zanpakutou for example. Its name is Kyoka Suigetsu." Now everyone's eyes were on the blade. "It is released with the command shatter, Kyoka Suigetsu."

He dropped his sword and for a moment nothing happened. Kei was about to point it out before he felt the temperature in the atmosphere drop. Then the air was polluted with vapour. It disappeared a second later and Aizen picked his sword up and sheathed it. Then he addressed the hollows again.

"Since I have shown you my release why don't the eight of you answer one question," he said in his usual casual tone. When the hollows said nothing he continued. "What kind of hollows are you?"

The spider was about to answer but the primate hybrid stopped it and turned to face the bespectacled man.

"What does it matter if we tell you or not," it said. "That information will be of no use to you when you're dead."

Deciding he'd had enough, Byakuya raised his zanpakutou and said. "Captain, allow me to deal with these insolent creatures."

Gin looked at him and smiled his trademark ear-to-ear grin. "Oh my Lieutenant Kuchiki, we getting greedy now aren't we?" He too raised his zanpakutou and pointed it at the hollows. "I can't let you have all the fun now can I?"

Deciding he didn't want to miss out in the fun, Kei turned to Aizen and asked how they were going to divide their opponents.

"The ratio is two to one," Aizen said. "So I'm thinking we should do just that, unless you feel your lieutenant is not up to it."

He's talking as if his lieutenant is stronger than mine, Kei thought, but said aloud, "Trust me Captain Aizen. He is more than up to the task."

Each soul reaper took two opponents. Byakuya had the scorpion and the lizard, Gin had the spider and the hornet, Aizen had the leopard and the gorilla and Kei had the hybrid and the horse. Each marked their targets very well before they attacked.

Kei cast a spell that separated him and his opponents from the others and their opponents so they don't interrupt each other's fights. Then the battles began.

* * *

"You were foolish to fight us soul reaper," the spider said in a feminine voice. "We will enjoy making you suffer."

Gin looked at the other hollow, whose expression promised an infinite amount of pain.

"Oh I'm so scared," he said. "Please stop saying that. You guys are scaring me."

His tone suggested mockery instead of fear. This made the spider mad.

"How dare you mock us insolent shinigami," it hissed. "Not only do we outnumber you but we are more powerful than you can ever compre-"

It stopped when it saw a flash of steel move past its face. It looked in shock as the stretching blade in bedded itself in its colleague's mask. The second hollow was already disintegrating. It turned to look at the lieutenant, ready to avenge its partner, but was paralysed with fear upon seeing his wide grin.

"The odds are in no one's favour now," he said. "Just you and me now."

* * *

Byakuya looked at his opponents. Not much, but at least he could take out his frustration on something.

"Do not harbour false belief that you will win," the scorpion said. "We will crush you like the bug you are."

Ironic, Byakuya thought as he prepared to release his zanpakutou. A scorpion called me a bug.

The lizard shot forward with unimaginable speed and swiped its tail at him but he managed to dodge.

"Hado 4," He said as he flash stepped behind them. "Byakurai!"

The pale lightning shot from his forefinger and hit the lizard head-on. The result was a mere scorch mark.

"Ha!" it exclaimed. "What a weak technique. Is that all you've got?"

"It would be foolish of you to believe that is the limit of my power," Byakuya said indifferently, surprising the hollows. "Let me show my true power, one that you will never reach even if you had a thousand years of training. Scatter, Sengbonzakura."

* * *

"Aren't you not going to draw your weapon soul reaper?" the leopard hollow asked.

Aizen adjusted his glasses and looked at him. "I'm afraid not. I am more than enough match for the two of you."

The gorilla, thinking that he was being arrogant and patronizing, decided to put an end to him. No one mocks him and lives to tell the tale. It swung its fist as hard as it could. After this attack its hand will be smeared with his gore and remains.

"What actually happened was Aizen blocking his massive punch easily with his hand. The hollow was shocked at first, then he began to feel pain as the bespectacled captain's hand tightened around his middle finger. Then he pulled, ripping the creatures arm completely off its body.

As the creature wailed in pain Aizen turned to the other, his smile was a bit wider now that he felt fear coming from it.

"Do not attack so recklessly," he warned. "Lest you end up like your friend."

* * *

Kei shunpoed towards the hybrid and attempted to kick it in the face, but the creature was fast enough to dodge him. The horse creature took the opportunity to attack but Kei had foreseen it. He raised his hand and pointed it at his assailant.

"Bakudo 39, Enkosen!"

A shield appeared between him and the hollow, and it absorbed its attack without any visible damage. Kei shunpoed to a safe distance and faced his opponents.

"This hit-and-run game of ours is going nowhere," he said. "How about we step it up a bit?"

The hybrid used a speed movement similar to a flash step, but had a noticeable difference of emitting sound. It tried to use one of its six legs to pierce his chest but he was much too fast for that. The horse hollow took the chance to fire a Cero at him.

"Bakudo 21, Sekieton!"

There was a small explosion, causing red smoke to fill the air around them. The Cero went through the smoke and destroyed all that was its way. When it cleared there was nothing. The area looked like a nuclear site.

"He's gone," the hybrid said with a snort. "And he was so full of talk. What a disa-"

He yelped in pain as a blade cut through one of his legs, severing it from his body. Both hollows turned around and saw Kei standing there completely unscathed with his zanpakutou in hand.

"You bastard!" the hybrid cried. "I will get you for this!"

Kei smiled. "Since you guys are going all out I've decided to show you my first release."

He raised his sword horizontally to his side with his right hand.

"Let thy light shine, Yoake!"

**-END-**

**Dictionary: (Japanese-English)**

**Yoake-Dawn **

**Okay, maybe I lied about the last chapter being the last one I was going to update for the year, but I kinda felt inspired and didn't want to lose that motivation. This is really my last chapter for the year. Happy New Year everyone!**


	7. Chapter 7: Impenetrable

**AN: chapter 7 is here, enjoy and please give me your views on my stories progress, :-D.**

**CHAPTER 7: IMPENETRABLE**

* * *

Rukongai: District 80

"Let thy light shine, Yoake!"

A bright light burst from the sword and was sent in all direction. The release of his Shikai was blinding to his opponents and both Hollows were taken aback by the amount of spiritual pressure released by the soul reaper. Compared to it, the reiatsu they were giving of earlier seemed tame. The light emitted from the sword was so bright it threatened to destroy their eyesight if they were exposed to it. The two hollows decided to cover their eyes until the light dimmed and everything was back to normal. The hybrid hollow opened its eyes and looked down at the soul reaper. In his hand rested a katana different from the one he was holding.

"This is my zanpaktou," the shinigami said. "Yoake."

The hollows inspected the sword. It looked like a normal katana with a silver blade and a golden hilt. Apart from that there seemed to be nothing special about the weapon.

"Your soul slayer seems is less appealing than those of your companions," the horse-like hollow said.

"This is a fight to the death," the hybrid hollow said. "So tell me your name that I may remember and boast my victory to any shinigami I might encounter in the future."

Kei Katsu pondered this for a moment.

"Back in my days with the Stealth Force it was considered taboo to know the name of your killer," he replied, making both hollows give him looks of disgust. "But that was long ago and I'm no longer part of the Squad 2 so I guess that doesn't matter anymore."

He would have continued had he not seen the horse-like hollow open its mouth and fire a Cero at him. He managed to deflect it easily with his sword, sending it back to the user, who was narrowly missed by it.

"Since you're not interested in chit-chat I guess it's time to get on with it," He said. He raised his sword and charged the hollow.

The captain did not use flash step, but he was still too fast for the hollow to react. Fortunately for it, its acquaintance jumped in the way. Its tail was raised with the stinger ready to impale the shinigami captain.

Kei saw all this but did not slow down in the least bit, in fact he seemed to pick up speed. As he did so he cried "Seinaru Hikari!"

A white light brighter than the one released when he revealed his Shikai was emitted from his zanpakutou, the hollow in front of him. The primate insect hollow knew his assailant would be on him any moment but couldn't see him. All he could see was the colour white. In a desperate attempt to evade the attack he used his speed movement to dodge.

What he had not realised was that Kei had not only expected this action, but had been counting on it. The hybrid had left its companion unprotected. He took a swipe at the hollow and separated its head from its body. It couldn't react to stop him as the assault of bright light had caught it by surprise and left it completely defenceless.

Kei turned back to his defeated opponent just in time to see him disintegrate into thin air. His gaze met the hybrid hollow's who looked both shocked and terrified. Kei almost pitied it and felt the need to explain what his zanpakutou's ability.

"Yoake is a light-type zanpakutou," he said. "In fact, she is the most powerful light-type zanpakutou in the entire Soul Society." The hollow gasped at this revelation, but the captain felt the need to continue. "The technique I just used, Seinaru Hikari, is one that emits a blinding light from my zanpakutou, eliminating your strongest sense, your sight. This caused you to panic, rendering you unable to use your other senses properly. When I attacked my target was your friend and that didn't change when you tried to protect him. When I used this technique you reacted exactly like I expected you to, leaving him in protected and shocked by the light that blinded him after you moved out of the way. He never knew what hit him."

The hollow growled. "So that was just a ploy? What if I had not moved?"

"Then you would have made things easier for me, I would have killed both of you with one slash."

* * *

"You bastard," the pink spider panted, looking at her opponent.

She tried to get to him but couldn't move. He had cut off all her legs on her right. She sent webs at him in order to trap him but he sliced them apart like they were nothing when in reality they were stronger than steel. What scared and pissed her off was the fact that he was completely unharmed. He could have finished her long ago but it he was too busy toying with her.

"You bastard," she repeated. "I'm going to kill you!"

The hollow jumped forward, ready to put an end to the man who had humiliated her like no one ever had. From one of its legs a red orb formed and started expanding.

"Oh my," Gin exclaimed in a mocking tone. "That looks dangerous."

Fed up with hearing his voice, she released the Cero and silently prayed that it lived up to its name and reduced him to nothing.

Her prayers were not answered.

All the lieutenant had done was point his dagger/zanpakutou at her attack and make its blade extend. The blade's extension not only managed to cut the split the Cero in half, it was able to replicate the process with the hollow. The look of terror in her eyes as she disintegrated remained there until she was no more.

"Oh well," Gin said. "I guess she got bored of the game."

* * *

The gorilla-like hollow gave a loud and terrifying roar as it fell to the floor. It had just lost its second and last arm to the bespectacled man. The pain was so immense it fell on its back and cried. What kind of monster was he? He wasn't even using his zanpakutou.

The tiger-like hadn't moved since the fight had stared. Unlike its companion it knew that a battle with this man would be impossible. As it stared at the man it couldn't help but think about the power he was displaying. Never had it met someone so strong. He was able to not only face his companion, who was stronger than most hollows in their class, but was able to deflect the strongest attack in a hollow's arsenal barehanded and with no visible damage.

"Now," the man said as he took a step closer towards him. "I require some information about your species. Give me the information I require, which I might add is the better part of the deal, or my fellow captain from the research department will torture it out of you. The choice is yours."

It took a only a second to decide. Hollows knew neither loyalty nor honour, but they had pride. This hollow too was unlike the rest, and it wasn't going to let this man, no matter how powerful he was, step on it. What the man was offering was not mercy, but humiliation, and would rather die than accept such a degrading covenant.

"DIE BASTARD!" it screamed, dashing towards the man.

The man raised his finger and pointed it at him.

"As you wish, Hado 88, Hiryu Gekizoku Shinten Raiho."

* * *

"Sengbonzakura's blades are too many too avoid," Byakuya said. "Soon their numbers will overwhelm you."

The hollow of course heard him but they wouldn't listen. There had to be another way around these sakura petals. Nothing was unavoidable. They tried to separate and attack him from both sides but it was no use. The cherry blossoms separated, five hundred of them following the scorpion-like hollow and its lizard counterpart. Senbonzakura not only blocked their attacks, but managed to retaliate and slice at them. The scorpion lost is left back leg while the lizard lost its tail. Both made the horrifying Hollow wail of pain. The scorpian lifted its tail and pointed it at the third lieutenant, which began to charge a red orb from its stinger, ready to fire it. However, before the deadly ball of reiatsu could be released Sengbonzakura cut the tail off, causing it to wail further.

"You Hollows believed yourself superior to us soul reapers," Byakuya said to them as he approached them.

Unable to move from their spots as a result of the crushing level of spiritual pressure coming from the lieutenant, all they could do was stay put and listen to his words.

"But now I shall display the superiority of our race by killing the two of them."

He raised his hands and causing the Hollows to be consumed in the thousand blades of Sengbonzakura. When the cherry blossoms returned to his hand as a katana there was nothing but their blood left of them.

Okay, I'm done, he thought. Now all I have to do is wait until the others are done. Then we can head back and I can check up on my Hisana.

As if someone had read his mind the Kido his captain had cast to separate them disintegrated, revealing his companions, none of them looked seemed to have gotten a scratch on them in their battles, which kind of surprised him because he had expected at least one of them (his fellow lieutenant) to struggle but it seems he was stronger than he gave him credit for.

"Liutenant Kuchiki!" Gin exclaimed in his sly voice. "It's so nice to see you unharmed."

Byakuya ignored him and observed his surroundings. Captain Katsu's Kido barrier had saved the town from their spiritual pressure so there was nothing to concern themselves with when it came to the villagers. From the eight hollows that had attacked them only two remained. The gorilla-like hollow lay armless at Captain Aizen's feet while the other surviving hollow, the primate insect hybrid near Captain Katsu, all six of its legs were missing.

"What do we do with them Captain?" Byakuya asked.

Kei shrugged. "We have to find out as much as we can about these hollows so, as much as I hate this idea, Mayuri is our only choice. We have to take them to him."

"I was really hoping for another way to settle this," Aizen said sincerely. "But it seems there is no other choice."

He gave a sigh and bend over to pick the hollow lying next to him up, but the other hollow caught his and everyone's attention.

"I never thought I would have to use this against the likes of you but I have no choice now," it said. If I can't win, NO ONE WILL!"

Its body started glowing and the spiritual pressure coming from it increased to almost half a dozen times its previous level. As reiatsu around it grew it glowed even brighter. The brighter it glowed the more it seemed its figure became distorted. Only the captains realised what it was that was about to hit them.

"It's gathering reishi," Aizen observed. "When it colloects enough reishi it will be compressed and then released, resulting in an explosion. Judging by the bright glow and the level of spiritual pressure it will probably be a big one."

"How big do you think it will be?" Kei asked.

Aizen had a grim look on his face as he answered. "The entire district is at risk."

Just great, Byakuya thought. Now instead of just investigating the hollows they had to save the civilians as well.

His captain didn't have the luxury to think like him. He needed to come up with something to protect the village. A Kido barrier would contain, there was no doubt about it. However , he didn't have the time to prepare one. He thought of another way and found only one.

"Guys I need your help," he said, gaining their attention immediately. "We need to contain the explosion and the only way I think we can do it is if we work together. There's only one spell I that can accomplish this. The problem is that only one side will be protected if I use it so we all have to use it simultaneously."

The others nodded, understanding his idea without him having to explain it much. They approached the hollow from all side and closed in on him. Some of them covered their eyes as they couldn't stand the bright light coming from the Hollow. They each raised their hands and shouted at the same time.

"BAKUDO 81, DANKU!"

Then the hollow exploded.

The powerful barriers conjured by each of them were strong enough to contain the explosion, but could not withstand the impact of it. The four barriers, which had formed a square around the hollow before it exploded, shattered like glass and the shinigami were sent flying backwards as a result of the collision. Each of them landed on the backs with a hard impact, creating huge craters were they fell.

Byakuya stood up and observed the handy work of their Kido. The spot where the hollow had detonated itself was scorched black in the shape of a square because of the spell they had used. The hollow was nowhere to be seen, which confirmed his suspicions about the technique being a kind of suicide bomb his gaze.

His gaze turned to his companions, who were getting up from the spots they landed in. apart from the soot on the clothes they appeared to be relatively unharmed.

"Damn," Kei said as he walked over to the blackened spot on the ground. "What a pain in the arse. That's why I prefer not doing this kind of crap."

"You seem to be in panic Captain Katsu," Gin said in his usual mocking tone.

"No I'm not," the third captain replied. "Just annoyed."

His gaze left the lieutenant and came to rest on the only remaining hollow, the green gorilla that had its arms ripped off by Aizen. It lay several dozen feet from them as they watched it writhe in agony.

"What happens to that guy?" Kei asked. "Do we take him to that sicko of Squad 12 or what?"

"It seems like it," Aizen replied. "The other hollow I battled was uncooperative so I guess the only way to find out what kind of hollow is to dissect him." He turned to his lieutenant. "Gin, pick him up, we're leaving."

Gin nodded and was about to comply, but something unexpected happened. A garganta opened and they heard the roars of what sounded like a hundred hollows. The soul reapers looked up and saw the Menos Grande emerging from the void, tearing at the sky further to make the Garganta bigger. Then they were blinded by a flash of yellow. When their eyes had adjusted to it they looked around to see what was happening. The hollow was trapped in a golden light and was steadily rising with a portion of the ground to the empty void.

What is that light? Aizen asked himself. His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of his fellow captain.

"What the hell is this shit?" the third captain said.

The other soul reapers turned to look at him and to their surprise saw that he was trapped in the mysterious light too and couldn't get out, like it was some sort of barrier. The captain tried to break it with his zanpakutou but it wouldn't budge.

"Captain!" Byakuya screamed. He raised his hands and aimed for the barrier. "Sprinkled on the bones of the beast! Sharp tower, red crystal, steel ring. Move and become the wind, stop and become the calm. The sound of warring spears fills the empty castle. Hado 63, Raikoho!"

A yellow wave of reiatsu burst from his palm and hit the barrier, causing a small explosion. To his surprise the spell bounced off the barrier and was sent back to the caster, who managed to dodge.

"Ha ha ha ha ha," the remaining hollow laughed to gain the attention. "This barrier is known as Negacion. No matter how much reiatsu you have you cannot break it. It will repel anything you throw at it. You friend cannot escape. He will die in Hueco Mundo. Ha ha ha ha…"

The three shinigami watched their fourth counterpart struggle to escape the barrier. He tried hitting the barrier as hard as he could, but all his efforts were fruitless.

"CAPTAIN!" Byakuya shouted. "NOOO!"

He watched helplessly as his superior and mentor was sucked into the garganta and kept watching even after it closed.

**-END-**

**Dictionary: ****(Japanese/English)**

**Seinaru Hikari- Holy Light**

**Another chapter finished, thank God. Next up: How Byakuya handles his captain's absence. Don't forget to give me your views on the story's progress. Thanks.**


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